On the Discourse today, we turn our attention to African Border Day, with the world having marked the occasion at the weekend, a day established by the African Union to reflect on regional integration, cross-border cooperation, and the dismantling of colonial-era barriers that have long divided the continent, questions have been asked about what that should look like in 2026. Borders in Africa are often viewed through the lens of conflict, illegal immigration, and economic bottlenecks. However, they also hold the keys to African unity, intra-continental trade, and shared resource governance. To unpack the shifting paradigms of African statecraft and regional integration -Peter Ndoro spoke to Dr McBride Peter Nkhalamba, Acting Director of Governance and Specialised Reporting at the African Union's African Peer Review Mechanism (APRM) and a board director at Corporate & Institutional Integrity Africa.